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Ainscough Crane Hire is working closely with the Worshipful Company of Shipwrights and the BBC to film the lifting of an ‘Ark’ that was created by Southampton’s Hamble Yacht Services. The ark was commissioned by the Worshipful Company of Shipwrights for the Lord Mayors Parade in London and was built as part of an appeal scheme to inspire children and young people to take interest in the maritime world. The appeal also aims to help raise £100,000 in donations per year for other initiatives in an effort to reinvigorate a maritime heritage amongst children and young people in the UK.
To help drive further awareness of the scheme, and as a thank you, the ark was then donated to a local Southampton primary school as a playing area. Peter Mould, a member of the build team from Hamble Yacht Services, submitted his children’s school as a potential candidate to receive the ark and subsequently the school, Oakfield Primary, was chosen by the Worshipful Company of Shipwrights and is being lifted in to place at the school by Ainscough Crane Hire. The lift is then being filmed by the BBC to mark the occasion.
The 12 metre long, 2.4 metre wide ark was handmade for the Lord Mayors Parade in London and was crafted in the image of the ark depicted in the famous story of Noah and the deluge of Gilgamesh (The Flood Story). A sculptured cast of a dove baring the olive branch was also created by a member of the build team at Hamble Yacht Services, Alison Morton, and placed on top of the ark. Once the ark was used for the parade in London it was then shipped back to Southampton to be lifted in to position on a tailored platform at the primary school and once fitted will be used by attendees of the school. When asked about receiving the ark, Elizabeth Smith – Head Teacher at Oakfield Primary School, said; “We are very lucky to have been selected. There were many schools put forward to receive the ark and we are just so very thankful that we were chosen.”
